The final home playoff spot in this season's ECAC Hockey championship's first round went to St. Lawrence University.
Despite falling to Quinnipiac in the regular-season finale last Saturday, the Saints locked up eighth place in the league standings with a 4-4 tie at Princeton the night before. The extra point earned from winning the subsequent shootout solidified SLU's place in the conference standings, and also earned it the final home playoff spot in the first round this upcoming weekend.
Ben Kraws stopped a season-high 46 shots through regulation and overtime at Princeton, then turned aside all five shots he faced in the shootout. Felikss Gavars scored twice for the Saints (10-18-6 overall, 8-10-4 ECAC Hockey), including a second-period penalty shot goal, while Jan Lasak tallied the only goal in the shootout, scoring in the fifth round.
David Jacobs scored twice for Princeton (10-15-4, 8-11-3), and also set up the game-tying goal late in the third period by Kai Daniels. Ethan Pearson finished with 18 saves for the Tigers in relief of starter Arthur Smith (10 saves). Princeton also outshot SLU, 50-32.
The Saints will now host Yale in a single-elimination contest on Friday, while the Tigers will visit Harvard that same night. The ultimate winner of the ECAC Hockey championship wins the Whitelaw Cup, and also garners the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament.
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